Ah...memories! Today our guest-blogger, Dianne Quinn, weighs in on a deep longing for the good old days.   

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I can still hear my mom reminiscing about “the good old days.” Much younger then, my eyes rolled with boredom as I listened to her stories and simply could not understand what she was talking about. How could she possibly compare her favorite “swing band” music to “The Beatles?” Now I yearn for “The Beatles” when my granddaughters flip out over the latest heartthrob-singing-hunk of the moment. Whether he can actually sing or not appears to be irrelevant.

I now find myself older than my mom was in that memory; and yes, it is a bit of a surprise that I too yearn for the “good old days.” Sadly, we must limit our lists to only ten yearnings, so here are mine:

10. REDUCE STRESS - There is an epidemic in America that is so serious that an entire industry has been created to attempt to teach people how to deal with it in healthier ways. Just as 2007 showed more symptoms than the year before, 2008 will probably be no different. I can yearn for this pattern to change, but I know it is a pipe dream.

9. MATERIALISM INSANITY - America’s current economic pains can partially be blamed on our insane need to accumulate more and more “things.” Marketing gurus and advertisers reading this may very well put a curse on me for even thinking such anti-American thoughts while at the same time soliciting me to upgrade my cell phone or buy a new car even though the 2001 model I have still works fine.

8. BLACK HOLE OF TELEVISION - I yearn for a return of quality network TV shows that are well written, well acted, and do not ignore those qualities in favor of silicone breasts and hairless chests. My yearning for better TV also applauds the demise of brainless reality shows where people look and act like idiots, while under the delusion that standing in their underwear in front of millions of people will somehow improve their self-esteem. I sometimes wonder at what moment in time Americans actually turned into the characters in the movie “Dumb and Dumber.”

7. KIDS SWEATING - Remember when kids were active outside? I vote for a comeback of more sports activities with major restrictions on computer time. It is definitely attainable, but the clock is ticking. In my youth, not only did we walk or run everywhere, we actually used our imaginations for more than dreaming up yet another must-have computer toy.

6. CORPORATE INTEGRITY - How about corporate CEOs not being guaranteed huge bonuses for a job they have yet to perform with good results. In a perfect world, this could happen, but in our world, I doubt that a sentence of a couple of years in a white-collar prison is a true deterrent, because when they get out, they are still millionaires.

5. TEACHERS RESPECTED - I remember when teachers held a position of respect in our country; when parents actually believed, and acted on, a teacher review or a punishment handed out by their child’s teacher. Now, many parents take personal affront to any criticism or correction of their child’s behavior or educational limitations. If Americans make education a priority, and parents are again held more responsible for the actions of their children, this could turn around again and kids might actually learn more by being held more accountable.

4. VALUE TOLERANCE - This has always been an important word in America. Our Constitution speaks about equality and freedoms for all. Yet, with every election, its meaning is being diminished. I still hold out hope that Americans will once again practice what they preach, and that the importance of the word “love” will surpass the word that appears to have taken its place: fear.

3. SHAME ON DIRTY POLITICS - My finger is not pointing at any one party, but everyone who has helped make dirty politics the now-accepted norm in America. I yearn for the time when lies and fear mongering were not considered acceptable political tactics. This Presidential election will determine whether or not this cancer in politics can swing back again where candidates really do care about integrity, are not in the pockets of wealthy “special interest” groups, and that the American public is much better served.

2. END DRUG DEPENDENCY - Certainly this encompasses all illegal drugs, but also legal prescription medication too. I yearn for a time when more people question what they put in their bodies — when we ate fresher, healthier food and made changes in our diet first — to help a problem condition before taking a prescription drug.

1. WHEN DID VIRTUE BECOME OBSOLETE? - My deepest yearning for a comeback concerns lost virtues. How about a return to a society that values people who have good character and live a life of integrity? If this were possible, the need for many of my other comeback yearnings would not be necessary. Is this a pipe dream? You will have to judge this for yourself.

The clock keeps ticking and my hope for change is holding on by a thread.